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(CNN)He had to stay alive for his family.

The thought flashed through his mind as the serrated edge of a long knife cut across his chest. Miami-Dade Police Officer Mario Gutierrez was thrashing on the ground in a violent struggle with a man who was trying to set fire to a gas station. Such a massive explosion could kill hundreds of people nearby.

"When he stabbed me and I thought of my family, I became the predator, and he became the prey, and that's why I survived," Gutierrez said of the primal instincts he felt during the fight of his life on the streets of Miami. "That is what saved my life: my training and my determination to survive."

The evening in October 2013 started off as a slow one for Gutierrez. He was patrolling a busy intersection near Miami International Airport when he noticed something unusual: clouds of smoke coming from the ground at a Shell gas station.

Gutierrez raced over and saw something even more ominous: A man had stretched out a gas hose and was attempting to set two 8,000-gallon underground gasoline tanks on fire.

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"When I saw that, I panicked, because I realized what was going to happen. And it scared me because I thought, 'Wow, we are going to die. This is going to be a catastrophe.' "

Gutierrez and Leon, who've spent most of their careers making fun of each other and joking that they're really just a couple of guys in the "13th grade," know they share a special bond.

"He's my brother," Gutierrez said. "We rely on each other."

Gutierrez had numerous surgeries and still gets emotional when thinking back to the incident.

"I had an overwhelming sense of failure. I felt that I did not do my job. I felt like I failed. I let this guy get under my guard, and it hurt me. I needed to know that I put up a fight, that I fought this guy because I didn't remember. I had no recollection of it. So that really bothered me. Still bothers me."

Gutierrez said the support and love from his family and brothers in uniform kept him fighting toward recovery.

Maytag repairman to Miami motorman

For 12 years, Gutierrez was a washing machine repairman, but he'd always wanted to be a police officer. A hiring freeze meant he had to wait almost three years after putting in his application. Every day, he would look in his mailbox for an acceptance letter.

After the gas station incident, the Miami police motorman couldn't wait to put on his uniform and return to work.

"To slap on this uniform and get back into the groove of things, it was, like, awesome. I love this job. It is an awesome job. Best thing they ever did was hire me," he said.

Gutierrez has received myriad awards, including the Medal of Valor from President Obama and a Congressional Badge of Bravery. He was also named the Miami-Dade Benevolent Association Officer of the Year in 2013 and received the MIA Hero Award from the Miami-Dade Aviation Department.

Even after receiving law enforcement's highest honor from the president, Gutierrez still says, "I am not a special man. I am just a regular guy that did his job."

Now two years away from retiring from his dream job, Gutierrez talks about honing his skills as a gunsmith and furthering his passion for cars. But what he'll miss most, he says, are his fellow officers.

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"I love those guys. They are like brothers to me."

With a sigh, Gutierrez reflects on his choice to join the force and highlights the importance of sharing his story.

"Police officers are everyday people that live in the community that decide to take on the burden, the responsibility, of deterring the predators that are out preying on society. Some of them lose their life."

Watch "New Day" and "CNN Newsroom" each Friday to see inspiring stories of officers going above and beyond the call of duty.